The present invention relates to the preparation of ends of fibers. More particularly, the present invention relates to the preparation of high quality optically satisfactory ends in brittle fibers such as glass optical fibers.
In the prior art cylindrical glass optical fibers, which typically include a core of high index glass surrounded by a cladding of lower index glass, have increasingly become valuable in applications requiring the transmission of light through the fibers by the phenomenon of total internal reflection. The utilization of light emerging from optical fibers and the optical connection of optical fiber ends typically require that the ends of the optical fibers be prepared to have a planar (squared) end face perpendicular to the axis of the fiber.
One method that has been proposed for producing a planar end face for an optical fiber involves grasping the fiber in two places, placing it under tension, introducing a bend in the fiber of an appropriate radius, scoring the fiber and breaking the fiber to produce a high quality end. However, this method does not have a perfect 100 percent yield of planar fiber ends; and when an unsatisfactory break is made, it may not be possible to again grasp the remaining length of fiber to repeat the method.
In another method of optical fiber end preparation, the optical fiber end is held in a manner permitting a grinding and polishing operation. However, the end surface quality may be imperfect as a result of the grinding and polishing unless a substantial amount of time is spent in the process.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to both increase the yield in a method of fiber end preparation and to keep the processing time required at a nominal duration.